UK maritime center records 325 Hormuz transits in a week

The UK Maritime Trade Operations center (UKMTO) recorded 325 reported vessel transits through the Strait of Hormuz from 29 October to 4 November. The total was about 17% higher than the previous week’s 277, but UKMTO assessed it as still roughly 65% below pre-war traffic, DW said in its account of the center’s November 6 report.

The Iran war began on 28 February 2026. Since then, attacks on commercial ships in the strait have put crews at risk of death and injury, while shipping companies have had to choose between attempting the passage and delaying cargo at higher cost.

UKMTO links merchant ships with military forces in the region and issues maritime warnings and activity reports.

Ship counts and energy supplies

Vessel counts alone do not show what has happened to energy supplies, because cargo volumes and shipping routes also matter, said Dalga Khatinoglu, an expert on Iran’s energy and macroeconomics. He said Middle Eastern crude exports had largely recovered to pre-war levels across all routes, a measure that includes more than shipments through Hormuz.

Khatinoglu said shipping and insurance costs remained very high even as regional oil exports approached pre-war levels. He said US protection for ships in Hormuz alone could not be expected to return oil prices to pre-war levels.

Citing figures from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, Khatinoglu said average freight rates for a large tanker carrying crude from the Middle East to East Asia rose from $3.18 per barrel at the start of the year to $37.13 at the end of October, about a twelvefold increase. Asian importers face elevated costs even when crude is available.

Ali Mohammadi, an expert in Iranian affairs, said reducing costs and restoring commercial confidence in the strait’s safety would require an end to the war and a lasting security agreement, not a US military presence alone.